The assurance of an abundant entrance into the kingdom of the Lord Jesus Christ

In some verses in the following passage, 2 Peter 1: 3—15, we are told what we must do to assure ourselves of an abundant entrance into the kingdom of the Lord Jesus Christ ..

In verse 3 we see that we have ALL we need from the Lord’s power operating within us to have His life and godliness we access His divine power inside of us by our knowing Him, He who has called us to glory and virtue.

Yes, He has called us to glory and virtue — Jesus shares His glory with believers:

John 17: 22      And the glory which thou gavest me I have given them; that they may be one, even as we are one:23 I in them, and thou in me, that they may be made perfect in one; and that the world may know that thou hast sent me, and hast loved them, as thou hast loved me.

Glory has also been translated as “praise” and “honor”. Glory in Websters: praise, honor, or distinction extended by common consent, renown. Great beauty and splendor. Magnificence

Synonyms: acclaim, applause, credit, homage

God has called us to virtue too , i.e., be powerful, courageous, honorable ; however, there are things we must be exercised in so that we can be all we are destined to be and so we do experience great joy at His appearing.

We must believe that He truly wants every single believer to grow into such excellence and then press towards becoming all He has given us the ability to be through our relationship (our communion, our walk) with Him.

In this passage Peter says to give diligence in adding things to ourselves.

Diligence is a strong word! It means to persistently, carefully attend to something – to ceaselessly endure to make sure it is taken care of..

We are told to work out our salvation with fear and trembling – that implies that same character of diligently, faithfully, continuously attending to the matter:

 

Phil 2: 12         Wherefore, my beloved, as ye have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling.13          For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure. 14  Do all things without murmurings and disputings:15   That ye may be blameless and harmless, the sons of God, without rebuke, in the midst of a crooked and perverse nation, among whom ye shine as lights in the world;16            Holding forth the word of life; that I may rejoice in the day of Christ, that I have not run in vain, neither laboured in vain.

On this path to becoming “blameless and harmless”, we must know what the directives we are given in the Word actually mean. In this case I am referring to the things Peter says we must “add to” our faith. How can I “add” to myself something that I no idea of what it looks like. If I don’t know what , e.g., “brotherly kindness” is , how can I exercise it and make it a part of my new life in Christ?

To this end of understanding I have added definitions by the qualities we are told to add to our faith.

In some cases I included the meanings opposite of what we are to add — sometimes I figure out what something is by what it is not. (

2 Pet 1: 3         According as his divine power hath given unto us all things that pertain unto life and godliness, through the knowledge of him that hath called us to glory and virtue:

4          Whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises: that by these ye might be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust.

5          And beside this, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue; and to virtue knowledge;

Faith: If I have faith I am persuaded and convinced of something. My faith in Christ means I constantly rely on Him for complete salvation.

Virtue: Valor, excellence

Dictionary.com: boldness or determination in facing great danger, especially in battle; heroic courage; bravery

Synonym courage. Antonym cowardice.

 

Knowledge: Dictionary.com: knowl·edge

1. acquaintance with facts, truths, or principles, as from study or investigation

……….3. acquaintance or familiarity gained by sight, experience, or report:

4. the fact or state of knowing; the perception of fact or truth; clear and certain mental apprehension.

 

6          And to knowledge temperance; and to temperance patience; and to patience godliness;

Temperance: Self control (includes in appetite), continence, mastery

Dictionary.com: tem·per·ance

1. moderation or self-restraint in action, statement, etc.; self-control.

2. habitual moderation in the indulgence of a natural appetite or passion

 

Patience: Cheerful or hopeful in endurance, constancy, staying “under”, bear trials, persevere websters: Longsuffering

Godliness: Piety Webster on Piety: showing reverence for Deity and devotion to divine worship; sacred or devotional as distinct from the profane or secular, worthy of commendation Synonyms: constant, dedicated, devoted, faithful, true; Antonyms: disloyal, faithless, false, fickle….

 

7          And to godliness brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness charity.

Brotherly Kindness: Fraternal affection, fond of the brethren

Synonyms for kindness in Webster: benevolence, showing of courtesy, indulgence, mercy, service

Antonyms: Coldheartedness, hardheartedness, inhumanity, mercilessness, pitilessness

Affection: Websters: a tender attachment, fondness (attachment, devotion))

Opposite: loathing, hate

Love (Agape): Affection, benevolence

Websters: A strong affection for another arising out of kinship or personal ties, affection based on admiration or common interests,warm attachment, an unselfish loyal and benevolent concern for the good of another

Benevolence: a disposition to do good, an act of kindness;

antonyms: ill will, venom, malevolence (malice is synonymous with malevolence and synonyms to malice are : cattiness, hatefulness, maliciousness, meanness, nastiness, spite, viciousness)

 

8          For if these things be in you, and abound, they make you that ye shall neither be barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. {rb You will get to know the Lord better as you ADD these things to your new life in Christ! You do not ever want to hear the words, “Depart from me — I never knew you”. }

9          But he that lacketh these things is blind, and cannot see afar off, and hath forgotten that he was purged from his old sins.

10        Wherefore the rather, brethren, give diligence to make your calling and election sure: for if ye do these things, ye shall never fall:

11        For so an entrance shall be ministered unto you abundantly into the everlasting kingdom of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.12          Wherefore I will not be negligent to put you always in remembrance of these things, though ye know them, and be established in the present truth. {RB Never tire of being reminded of what spiritual disciplines we must consistently exercise! Even if we think we “know” them — we don’t really know them until all is thoroughly worked into our walk with Him.}  13          Yea, I think it meet, as long as I am in this tabernacle, to stir you up by putting you in remembrance;14         Knowing that shortly I must put off this my tabernacle, even as our Lord Jesus Christ hath shewed me.15      Moreover I will endeavour that ye may be able after my decease to have these things always in remembrance.

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We must be  always mindful that the Lord is coming to set up His kingdom — we must be prepared:  Let the hope of receiving His kingdom motivate  you NOW to love and serve the King!!!

Seek FIRST the kingdom of God:

Luke 12: 29     And seek not ye what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink, neither be ye of doubtful mind.30         For all these things do the nations of the world seek after: and your Father knoweth that ye have need of these things.31 But rather seek ye the kingdom of God; and all these things shall be added unto you.32         Fear not, little flock; for it is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom.33        Sell that ye have, and give alms; provide yourselves bags which wax not old, a treasure in the heavens that faileth not, where no thief approacheth, neither moth corrupteth.34     For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.35 Let your loins be girded about, and your lights burning;36          And ye yourselves like unto men that wait for their lord, when he will return from the wedding; that when he cometh and knocketh, they may open unto him immediately.37  Blessed are those servants, whom the lord when he cometh shall find watching: verily I say unto you, that he shall gird himself, and make them to sit down to meat, and will come forth and serve them.38            And if he shall come in the second watch, or come in the third watch, and find them so, blessed are those servants.39      And this know, that if the goodman of the house had known what hour the thief would come, he would have watched, and not have suffered his house to be broken through.40      Be ye therefore ready also: for the Son of man cometh at an hour when ye think not.

Mark 13: 23     But take ye heed: behold, I have foretold you all things.24  But in those days, after that tribulation, the sun shall be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light,25  And the stars of heaven shall fall, and the powers that are in heaven shall be shaken.26 And then shall they see the Son of man coming in the clouds with great power and glory.27     And then shall he send his angels, and shall gather together his elect from the four winds, from the uttermost part of the earth to the uttermost part of heaven.28 Now learn a parable of the fig tree; When her branch is yet tender, and putteth forth leaves, ye know that summer is near:29       So ye in like manner, when ye shall see these things come to pass, know that it is nigh, even at the doors.30      Verily I say unto you, that this generation shall not pass, till all these things be done.31      Heaven and earth shall pass away: but my words shall not pass away.32 But of that day and that hour knoweth no man, no, not the angels which are in heaven, neither the Son, but the Father.    33 Take ye heed,watch and pray: for ye know not when the time is.
.34    For the Son of man is as a man taking a far journey, who left his house, and gave authority to his servants, and to every man his work, and commanded the porter to watch.35      Watch ye therefore: for ye know not when the master of the house cometh, at even, or at midnight, or at the cockcrowing, or in the morning:36          Lest coming suddenly he find you sleeping. 37   And what I say unto you I say unto all, Watch.

Definition of Watch: Stay awake, be vigilant, rouse yourself from inactivity, be alert and aware Dictionary.com: to be alertly on the lookout, look attentively, or observe, as to see what comes, is done, or happens 2. to look or wait attentively and expectantly (usually followed by for ): 3. to be careful or cautious:4. to keep awake, especially for a purpose; remain vigilant, as for protection or safekeeping:

 

Rev 3: 1           And unto the angel of the church in Sardis write; These things saith he that hath the seven Spirits of God, and the seven stars; I know thy works, that thou hast a name that thou livest, and art dead.2            Be watchful, and strengthen the things which remain, that are ready to die: for I have not found thy works perfect before God.3    Remember therefore how thou hast received and heard, and hold fast, and repent. If therefore thou shalt not watch, I will come on thee as a thief, and thou shalt not know what hour I will come upon thee.4            Thou hast a few names even in Sardis which have not defiled their garments; and they shall walk with me in white: for they are worthy.5   He that overcometh, the same shall be clothed in white raiment; and I will not blot out his name out of the book of life, but I will confess his name before my Father, and before his angels.6      He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches.

The theme of WATCHING and staying awake:

Matt 26: 41 Watch and pray, that ye enter not into temptation: the spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.

1 Cor 16:13          Watch ye, stand fast in the faith, quit you like men, be strong.

Eph 6: 18    Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints;

1 Pet 4: 7    But the end of all things is at hand: be ye therefore sober, and watch unto prayer.

1 Pet 5: 8    Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour:9      Whom resist stedfast in the faith, knowing that the same afflictions are accomplished in your brethren that are in the world.10       But the God of all grace, who hath called us unto his eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after that ye have suffered a while, make you perfect, stablish, strengthen, settle you.11 To him be glory and dominion for ever and ever. Amen.

Rev 16: 15  Behold, I come as a thief. Blessed is he that watcheth, and keepeth his garments, lest he walk naked, and they see his shame.

Rom 13: 11 And that, knowing the time, that now it is high time to awake out of sleep: for now is our salvation nearer than when we believed.12  The night is far spent, the day is at hand: let us therefore cast off the works of darkness, and let us put on the armour of light.

Col 4: 2       Continue in prayer, and watch in the same with thanksgiving;

1Thes 5: 1   But of the times and the seasons, brethren, ye have no need that I write unto you.2          For yourselves know perfectly that the day of the Lord so cometh as a thief in the night.3        For when they shall say, Peace and safety; then sudden destruction cometh upon them, as travail upon a woman with child; and they shall not escape.4     But ye, brethren, are not in darkness, that that day should overtake you as a thief.5        Ye are all the children of light, and the children of the day: we are not of the night, nor of darkness.6     Therefore let us not sleep, as do others; but let us watch and be sober.

7        For they that sleep sleep in the night; and they that be drunken are drunken in the night.8        But let us, who are of the day, be sober, putting on the breastplate of faith and love; and for an helmet, the hope of salvation.

9        For God hath not appointed us to wrath, but to obtain salvation by our Lord Jesus Christ,10    Who died for us, that, whether we wake or sleep, we should live together with him.

The word “watch”  sometimes  has within its meaning the ideas  of awakening or staying awake,  and of rising up:

Eph 5: 14    Wherefore he saith, Awake thou that sleepest, and arise from the dead, and Christ shall give thee light.15 See then that ye walk circumspectly, not as fools, but as wise,16          Redeeming the time, because the days are evil.17          Wherefore be ye not unwise, but understanding what the will of the Lord is.18      And be not drunk with wine, wherein is excess; but be filled with the Spirit;19         Speaking to yourselves in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord;20          Giving thanks always for all things unto God and the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ;

Please  read this post carefully – I really sense there are words in here that the Holy Spirit wants you to receive deep within your spirit:

Don’t enpower any one of us to make you feel worse with our “advice”. 

Please don’t withdraw! 

 Depression is DIFFICULT!! It can be physically based  and/or from    emotional wounds from the past (even moments of  rejection in the womb!), demonically enhanced, a lack of certain vitamins/minerals/ sunshine/exercise, and/or it can be something negative we have to face (anger, unforgiveness, sin, etc.).  NONE of us is in a position to say “Snap out of it”.  I suffered depression for awhile in 1964, 1966–to 1968, and then again around 1971 or so.  Actually, some again in 1975.  I did literally get deliverance from some pesky demons and have not been depressed since, i.e., the kind of heaviness/gloom that lasts and lasts and you cannot see colors, beauty, etc. 

 There can be a genetic propensity too  –  WHO KNOWS all of the factors involved in each person individually (uniquely) other than our Lord.

 I do know  that listening to and agreeing with praise and worship music can  help a great deal (“the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness”) – sometimes we just plow through our listening to the music by faith because the heaviness is so very HEAVY.

Please, please know that the quick  “faith” answers don’t  always reflect the kind of faith God is looking for….sometimes it is our  faith that has to WAR through for weeks and weeks with trust in God while the battle is raging and dark.  The Spirit of Christ within our spirit does the work while we trust Him to deliver us.

I was actually deeply HURT by that  “to a fault” “faith fad”  that was raging in the ‘70’s when folks would respond to  someone else’s , e.g.,  migraine with a “just confess  your healing and move on”.  IF the headache is still there after  their prayer, I WILL take an aspirin!  I will not sneak and take one just to please the person who prayed for me.

People used to literally throw away their glasses after being prayed for and I would say , “That is ridiculous  – if God healed the person , the glasses will not work properly anymore and if He did not, they will still need the glasses”.  We don’t have to say or do presumptuous  stuff to keep from looking faithless. God is big enough to see where we are truly at – we will not hurt His feelings if we need a second, third, and fourth touch from Him over a long period of time. 

 I have faith in God even IF He chooses – for whatever reason – to allow things to linger. Or, like Job I can say, “though He slay me…” Ignore the ignorance of some “ faith teachers” who say it was Job’s own fault because “the thing he greatly feared” happened. Before it all happened God Himself told the devil Job was perfect in his behavior. The trial was a test to make Job’s testimony a blessing to us all to the praise of God.  Job KEPT a good testimony through all his trials and God multiplied blessings to him afterwards. 

Please  stop beating yourself up and/or giving away to others the power to define what you need or are in response to your tribulation…just hold on to the Lord no matter what.  You are a treasure of helpfulness to the body of Christ and the enemy wants to shut you down. Sort through all the advice and receive what resonants in your spirit as words from His Spirit.

Even if you make a  Facebook post that looks like it came out of the lamenting portions of Lamentations, it is good for us Christians to FACE the fact the we do experience tribulation in this world (all the while remembering  that (deep in our spirit) to “be of good cheer” because the Lord overcame the world) . Sometimes our spirit man is dancing while our soul and bodies are lamenting. Yes, I know that sounds strange, but that is the way it can be in the midst of the  warfare.

I pray you withstand this new bout of warfare and even in the midst of it that you sense the Lord’s loving presence in spite of it!!!!!! He LOVES you! He is your Father!!! Unlike any earthly father ever could be….

Many die in their battle with, e.g., cancer not knowing WHY the healing did not appear.

 There are simply things we do not understand and we think we are doing someone a favor  when  we have some simple, quick answer to “encourage” them.

Note to all of us when we make that mistake:   I do know we do it out of a loving attempt to help and we do mean well….and sometimes we just share what we have been taught. Having never been through depression, we just cannot imagine what someone  is going through so we say the standard things we hear everyone else say.  

Once  I told a friend after she complained about all the stupid stuff people said to her at her dad’s funeral:  “Overlook the feeble, bumbling attempts of some of your friends to comfort you – just celebrate the love it took for them to show up to demonstrate their sympathy”.

I pray you have a testimony here and there concerning the victory in the battles and I also pray there come the day the overall war is over completely!!